McCain worries conflict in Syria will engulf region

Sen. John McCain said on Sunday “the whole region is going to be engulfed” by the conflict in Syria and “that would be a threat to the United States’ vital national security.”

And he said he and Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.), both members of the Senate Armed Services Committee, will go to the White House on Monday to meet with President Barack Obama.

The Arizona Republican, who also blasted the leaks during the last week about possible military strikes in Syria, said the president could have acted unilaterally in compliance with the War Powers Act. But by not making that decision, he has raised “serious consequences as far as the steadfastness and purpose of this administration.”

“If he had acted, as Ronald Reagan did, as Bill Clinton did, as a number of other president did, in compliance basically with the War Powers act, I think that he could have done that,” McCain said on CBS's "Face the Nation.". “And that would have been a decision made by the president. But at the eleventh hour, when the strikes -- leaks have been massive, and unprecedented, the strikes are already planned, we know what ships are there, we know how many missiles -- unprecedented leaking, then a reversal at this point I think has serious consequences as far as the steadfastness and purpose of this administration.”

And "when the president of the United States said that it was a red line, he didn't say that ‘it's a red line and by the way I’m going to have to seek the approval of Congress,” McCain said.

“He said it was a red line and the United States of America would act," the senator added. "And that is a big difference. And that's one of the reasons why this is so problematic.”

The conflict in Syria already has had a wide impact, he said, noting “the whole region is going to be engulfed by this, and that would be a threat to the United States’ vital national security.”

“We’ve let it deteriorate to the point where it's extremely difficult and we have now a regional conflict, and those who believe that this conflict can be contained are wrong,” he said. “Already, Jordan is destabilized, Lebanon, Syria has become a haven for al Qaeda with Syria and Iraq, and it's unraveling. The whole region is going to be engulfed by this, and that would be a threat to the United States’ vital national security.”

Agreeing with Secretary of State John Kerry’s statements on Sunday likening Assad to Adolf Hitler, Saddam Hussein and a murderous thug — “he’s all of that,” McCain said —the senator called the failure to act in Syria and give weapons to the rebels in Syria “shameful.”

“I’m not sure exactly how the resolution should be written, but I do know it should have room for us to provide assistance to those who are struggling against overwhelming odds right now, including chemical weapons attacks,” he said.